Local bodies’ assn will ask Govt to axe transport bill

Press, 18 April 1980, Page 3

Local bodies’ assn will ask Govt to axe transport bill

PA Rotorua The Municipal Association has voted overwhelmingly to ask Government to withdraw pie Urban Transport Bill. The mayors of the five main centres which were to be the first to benefit from a reorganisation of urban jtransport led the opposition to the bill at the association’s conference at Rotorua. The Mayor of Christchurch (Mr Hamish Hay) said the legislation was opposed and totally Unnecessary.” The Mayor of Auckland .(Sir Dove-Meyer Robinson) Said the Government was rusing a sledgehammer to Squash a flea” with the legislation. He suspected the Government of the sinsister inotive of unloading its own tests on to ratepayers. Both Mr Hay and Sir Dove-Meyer said ample powers existed under other acts for the Government to Peal with the problems of Urban transport. The Mayor of Wellington (Mr Michael Fowler) said his council approved the principle of the bill but pbjected to the proposals Containing no undertaking by the Government on on-

a going funding for the systems to be established. 1 The Mayor of Lower Hutt > (Mr J. Kennedy-Good) said 7 councils were being asked to sign a blank cheque with their ratepayers to pay for B|the service at an unspecified Dj figure. n Among speakers who n I favoured salvaging good , asLpects of the proposed legis--llation was the chairman of -■the Auckland Regional ■ Authority (Mr L. I. Mur- - doch) who said the concept j of the bill was good and one slthat local government should / support because it did not interfere with its functions, i j The association made, s written submissions on the 5 i bill to the local bills com- 1 3 mittee after the measure’s g introduction into Parliament , late last year. r Other topics discussed at ‘ the conference included the price of milk and stronger r local Government. , Variations in the price of r a bottle of milk upset some i ‘ delegates. The Mayor of f Taihape (Mr W. I. Munro) ( said a 600 mm bottle of milk i , cost 20c in his town and i i was delivered there only i , four days a. week. The price 1 ■ of the same bottle in Palm- 1

• erston North was 18c, with daily deliveries. “Since 1975 the price of a I bottle of milk has risen ■ from 4c to 18c,” said Mr i Munro. “Surely with that sort of rise in that time a I uniform price could be established throughout New i Zealand.” ■ The Mayor of Wairoa (Mr • J. S. Standring) supported a ! standard price structure. The I association agreed to take up the matter with the Gov- : eminent. s The president of the assoI ciation, Mr D. V. Sutherland : (New Plymouth), urged 'members to form stronger ; units of local government to • | force the Government to 'listen to them. He said the association : lacked recognition as a political authority. Proof of the lack of influence was the; i Government’s failure to heed ' the constant pleas during the 1970 s for revenue-shar-ing to help meet local-body costs. “We must insist that we deal with local functions in co-operation with Government departments but we must not be dominated by the Government,” said Mr ; Sutherland.